Zainuddin Maidin phone call with al jazeera

and people criticizes siti nurhaliza's english.

what follows is a recording of the telephone interview that Malaysia’s Minister of Information Zainuddin Maidin (ZAM) gave Al-Jazeera yesterday, moments after the Bersih memo was delivered to the Royal Palace at the close of the biggest anti-government protest in Malaysia in ten years.

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seriously, this is pretty fucking embarrassing. i'm not talking about his english-speaking capabilities, i'm talking about his inefficient and down right pathetic skills to have an intelligent argument with a fucking melodramatic reporter. he can't even speak with a worth while point. and the stutters? i really think our greatly respected minister of information should chill the fuck out when doing an interview with any reporter in the future, because the failings to adhere to that simple rule might lead to people thinking that the person who's talking, is a jackass.

and oh. i think the BERSIH demo was awesome. i don't 100% agree with them, but at least they have shown the reality of freedom of speech and democracy in malaysia. good job anwar, and next time, do it more peacefully.

here are the transcript of the interview:

ZAM: ….I commend your journalists trying to project, to exaggerate more than what actually happened. That, that, that, that’s it. We, we are not, the, the — and I, I congratulate your journalists behaving like an actor, that, that’s —

AJ: As you say that, sir, we’re watching scenes of protesters being sprayed by chemical-filled water …

ZAM (interrupts): Ya, I am watching, I hear, [?] …. trying to do it everywhere but in Malaysia people are allowed, to, you know [?] … Police have allowed the procession to go to the Istana Negara, you know, do police, first police, like, they handle them, they [?] them, they … the police don’t, don’t, don’t fire anybody …

AJ: Our correspondent came back to the office, sir, with chemicals in his eyes!

ZAM (speaking over her): … You, you, you, you are here with the idea, you are trying to project, what is your mind, you think that we are Pakistan, we are Burma, we are Myanmar, everything you, you are thinking …

AJ: Well unfortunately when you refuse to let people protest, it does appear so.

ZAM (speaking over her): …Ya, ya, we are not like you, you have early perception, you come here, you want to project us like undemocratic country. This a democratic country!

AJ: So why can’t people protest then, if it’s a democratic country?

ZAM (interjects at “protest then”): Ya, people protest, people then — first they protest, we are allowing protests, and they have demonstrated. But we just trying to disperse them and then later they, you know, disperse, but later our police compromise. They have compromised and allowed them to proceed to Negara. Police, our police have succeeded in handling them gently, right? Why do you report that and you take the opposition, someone from opposition party you ask him to speak, you don’t take from the government, right?

AJ: Why did you not break up these protesters –

ZAM (interrupting): Pardon? Pardon? Pardon?

AJ: Why did you not break up these protests more peacefully?

ZAM: I can’t hear you. I can’t hear you.

AJ: Why did you not break up these protests more peacefully?

ZAM: No we, we are, we, this protest is illegal. We don’t want, this, the, normally … (slight pause, then continues to talk while she interjects)

AJ (interjecting): OK, so let me return to my former question. Why is this protest illegal?

ZAM (babbling on): Ya it’s illegal protest because (AJ: Why?) we have the election in Malaysia. It’s no, no point on having the protest, we are allowing to have every, an election every five years, never fail. We not our like, are not like Myanmar, not like other country. And, and you are helping this. You Al-Jazeera also is helping this, this forces, the, you know, these forces who are not [?], who don’t believe in [?] …

AJ (seems to want to say something, but decides not to): I don’t … many thanks for joining us.

ZAM: I don’t, ya, you, Jazeera, this is, is Al-Jazeera attitude. Right?

(she doesn’t reply. In the background, the chants of the protesters fill the silence)